Bit.ly Attacks “Mastering Ethereum” Book: Doesn’t Allow 200 Links
When it comes to Bitcoin proponents, there isn’t anyone as prominent, knowledgeable, and likable as Andreas M. Antonopoulos , a former Greek cybersecurity expert turned cryptocurrency fanatic. Antonopoulos, who has become the de-facto face (and hair) of this budding industry, has become world-renowned for his books, speeches, and educational content pertaining to popular cryptocurrency projects, like Bitcoin and Ethereum, and blockchain technologies.
After releasing and subsequently revising “Mastering Bitcoin: Unlocking Digital Currencies,” the industry pundit sought to expand his sphere of influence, branching out to Ethereum, the world’s second-most popular blockchain network.
In a similar manner to his Bitcoin-related book, Antonopoulos unveiled “Mastering Ethereum ” as a one-stop shop for enthusiasts to learn more about the Ethereum Project, which was parented by a group of developers who had a penchant for innovation.
Although many await the full publication of the lauded piece of educational content, which has been made public to reflect the ethos of Bitcoin, it was recently revealed that Antonopoulos has unfortunately been subject to some hiccups, so to speak.
Through Twitter, the Bitcoin fanatic called out Bitly, the company behind Bit.ly, a popular URL shortening platform, which seemingly blocked links situated in the early-access version of Mastering Ethereum, which is set to be published in December.

Hey @Bitly ,
Why are you blocking https://t.co/9gk4wWPQnN links to crypto-currency sites?
I'm about to publish my 4th book and it has about 200 https://t.co/9gk4wWPQnN links in it. If you are going to block links, I will need to remove all 200 and replace them with a competitor https://t.co/Xg4FkemcA7
— Andreas M. Antonopoulos (@aantonop) November 3, 2018

The author, obviously perturbed by this occurrence, wrote:
I’m about to publish my 4th book and it has about 200 http:// bit.ly links in it. If you are going to block links, I will need to remove all 200 and replace them with a competitor.
Although the internet startup has yet to respond, many of Antonopoulos’ fans have claimed that this Bitly’s move to consciously put warnings in front of certain crypto-related links is an issue with centralized systems and shows how traditionalists are scared of what this ground-breaking innovation has to offer.
China Lauds Antonopoulos’ “Mastering Bitcoin”
Interestingly, just a week before Bitly essentially censored crypto-related content, the government-run China Central Television (CCTV) lauded Antonopoulos’ book to a nation-wide audience.

. @aantonop 's "Mastering Bitcoin" was recommended on China's official TV channel today to national wide audience. However, the book title in the Chinese version was changed to "Blockchain: The Path Towards Digitized Assets". No #Bitcoin mentioned at all! https://t.co/NjtizGipeT pic.twitter.com/a16i2dI5tb
— cnLedger (@cnLedger) October 25, 2018

Although the TV hosts spoke highly of the Bitcoin primer, CCTV, staying congruent with China’s regulatory stance on crypto assets had altered the title, likely without Andreas’ permission. The title, which was obviously presented in hanzi (Chinese characters), roughly translates to “Blockchain: The Path Towards Digitized Assets.”
This move accentuates the local government’s move to stray away from adopting cryptocurrencies, while still accepting blockchain technologies with open arms — which Andreas sees as a misguided practice, as clearly seen in his Youtube piece titled “Blockchain, Not Bitcoin.”
The prominent Bitcoin expert pointed out that even though the title was “sanitized” for Chinese consumption, the content in-book, which outlines Bitcoin and the technology backing the decentralized network, remains the same.
Seeming excited by this development, which could catapult crypto (or at least blockchain) adoption in the nation, Antonopoulos then added that he is “hoping to visit China next year,” with his trip likely being purposed to spread the good name of Bitcoin.
Title Image Courtesy of Markus Spiske on Unsplash
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